Ali Salem

Ali Salem, also transliterated Ali Salim, (Arabic: على سالم‎, IPA: [ˈʕæli ˈsæːlem]; 24 February 1936 – 22 September 2015) was an Egyptian playwright, author, and political commentator[1] known for controversially endorsing cooperation with Israel.[2] The Los Angeles Times once described him as "a big, loud man known for his satiric wit".[2]

This article is about the Egyptian writer. For the archer, see Ali Ahmed (archer).
Ali Salem
A meeting in Cairo between Salem and representative of Mothers and Women for Peace from Israel, 1998
Born(1936-02-24)24 February 1936
Damietta, Egypt
Died22 September 2015(2015-09-22) (aged 79)
Mohandessin, Egypt
NationalityEgyptian
Occupationplaywright, author
AwardsCivil Courage Prize (2008)

Career

From the premiere of his first play in 1965, he wrote 25 plays and fifteen books.[3] One of the best known, The School of Troublemakers, debuted in 1971 and featured a rowdy class of children transformed by a kind teacher.[2] His plays The Phantom of Heliopolis, The Comedy of Oedipus, The Man Who Fooled the Angels, and The Buffet have also become "classics of the Egyptian theater".[3] Salem's plays often include allegorical critiques of Egyptian politics with a strong vein of humor and satire.[3]

In 1994, he wrote a book entitled My Drive to Israel about a trip he took to the country to satisfy his curiosity about it following the signing of the Oslo Accords.[4][5] He later claimed that the trip was not "a love trip, but a serious attempt to get rid of hate. Hatred prevents us from knowing reality as it is".[2] He spent 23 nights in Israel and concluded that "real co-operation" between the two nations should be possible.[4] Though the book sold more than 60,000 copies, a bestseller by Egyptian standards, it provoked controversy, and Salem was subsequently ostracized from the Egyptian intellectual community and expelled from its Writer's Syndicate as a result of his "propaganda."[2] He did not have a play or movie script produced in Egypt after the book's publication,[4][6] though he continued to contribute columns to foreign media such as the London-based Al Hayat.[2] Salem's memoir was later adapted by Ari Roth into the play Ali Salem Drives to Israel, which had its world premiere in the US in 2005.[7][8]

In 2008, he won the Train Foundation's $50,000 Civil Courage Prize in recognition of his opposition to Islamic extremism and his support of cooperation with Israel.[6] He also received an honorary doctorate from Israel's Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in 2005.[3] He died on 22 September 2015 after a long illness.[9]

Ali Salem died in Cairo on Sep 22, 2015.[5]

References
  1. Michael Slackman (9 March 2005). "Egypt's Metamorphosis: One Step Down the Open Road". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  2. Nadia Abou El-Magd (10 November 2002). "Egyptian Writer Pays High Price for Visit to Israel". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  3. "2008 Civil Courage Prize Honoree: Ali Salem of Egypt". Civil Courage Prize. 2008. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  4. Christian Fraser (12 October 2009). "Egyptians nervous of Israeli culture". BBC News. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  5. "Ali Salem's Journey". The New Yorker. 2015-09-28. Retrieved 2016-10-06.
  6. "Egypt author Ali Salem receives courage award". Reuters. 18 November 2008. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  7. Barry Barriere (21 January 2005). "Forecast: Fun". The Washington Post. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  8. "Association for Jewish Theatre members announce 2004-05 Season". jewish-theatre.com. Archived from the original on 2013-04-20. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  9. "Famous playwright Ali Salem dies at 79 - Egypt Independent". egyptindependent.com. Retrieved 23 September 2015.

Articles
  • Hugi, Jacky. "Death of Egyptian author who drove across Israel leaves void in Israeli-Egyptian relations", Al-Monitor on-line magazine; 30 Sept. 2015.
  • Mikics, David. "The Muslim World's Intellectual Refuseniks Offer Enlightened Views on Islam and Israel", TabletMag.com on-line magazine; 3 Dec. 2013.
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